The German Society for Plant Sciences (also known as German Botanical Society, ''Deutsche Botanische Gesellschaft'', DBG) is a non-profit network for plant sciences and

botany Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...

in the German-speaking area. It was founded 1882 at

Eisenach Eisenach () is a town in Thuringia, Germany with 42,000 inhabitants, located west of Erfurt, southeast of Kassel and northeast of Frankfurt. It is the main urban centre of western Thuringia and bordering northeastern Hessian regions, situat ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. In July 2020 it comprises more than 900 individual members and persons working or interested in plant science. The

society A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Socie ...

supports young scientists and unites all generations.

Tasks and goals

DBG represents plant

scientist A scientist is a person who conducts Scientific method, scientific research to advance knowledge in an Branches of science, area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, ...

s, promotes

plant sciences Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek wo ...

and scientific

nationally and internationally. It integrates all plant science disciplines, like

plant ecology Plant ecology is a subdiscipline of ecology which studies the distribution and abundance of plants, the effects of environmental factors upon the abundance of plants, and the interactions among and between plants and other organisms. Examples ...

, plant biochemistry,

plant genetics Plant genetics is the study of genes, genetic variation, and heredity specifically in plants.Hartl D, Jones E (2005) It is generally considered a field of biology and botany, but intersects frequently with many other life sciences and is strongly ...

evolution Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...

, plant physiology,

morphology Morphology, from the Greek and meaning "study of shape", may refer to: Disciplines * Morphology (archaeology), study of the shapes or forms of artifacts * Morphology (astronomy), study of the shape of astronomical objects such as nebulae, galaxies ...

and

taxonomy Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification. A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. ...

and is a

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

Activities

Main activities comprise editing scientific articles especially in its scientific journal ''Plant Biology''. This journal is successor of the ''Botanica Acta'' (1988 ̶ 1998) and ''Berichte der Deutschen Botanischen Gesellschaft'' (1882 ̶1987). Every other year the society organises an

academic conference An academic conference or scientific conference (also congress, symposium, workshop, or meeting) is an event for researchers (not necessarily academics) to present and discuss their scholarly work. Together with academic or scientific journals an ...

, the („Botanikertagung“). The conference comprises keynote lectures, oral as well as poster

presentation A presentation conveys information from a speaker to an audience. Presentations are typically demonstrations, introduction, lecture, or speech meant to inform, persuade, inspire, motivate, build goodwill, or present a new idea/product. Presenta ...

s and

excursion An excursion is a trip by a group of people, usually made for leisure, education, or physical purposes. It is often an adjunct to a longer journey or visit to a place, sometimes for other (typically work-related) purposes. Public transportatio ...

s. Member assemblies also take place during the biannual conference. In the years in-between DBG's Sections (see below) offer workshops and conferences on their fields of expertise. Since 2014 early career scientists can apply for financial support to organise the so-called Eduard Strasburger Workshop.

Advancement awards and science prizes

To support the next generation of qualified plant scientists DBG awards advancement and science prizes on a regular basis and offers travel allowances to participate in its conferences. DBG also supports conferences in several plant science disciplines to foster participations of early career scientists. DBG confers the

Wilhelm Pfeffer Wilhelm Friedrich Philipp Pfeffer (9 March 1845 – 31 January 1920) was a German botanist and plant physiologist born in Grebenstein. Academic career He studied chemistry and pharmacy at the University of Göttingen, where his instructors incl ...

Award for an exceptional PhD thesis, a price for the best plant science paper and the Horst Wiehe Prize for plant science. Since 1994 the Society is involved in the bestowal of the Eduard Strasburger Award for an exceptional and innovative work of a postdoc. Since 2014 DBG honours the best plant science Master

theses A thesis ( : theses), or dissertation (abbreviated diss.), is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings.International Standard ISO 7144: ...

of participating

universities A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

. Besides these awards for early career scientists DBG bestows the Simon Schwendener Medal for meritious members who engaged in the society for the profit of all.

History

DBG was founded in September 1882 at

, and is among the oldest

scientific societies A learned society (; also learned academy, scholarly society, or academic association) is an organization that exists to promote an academic discipline, profession, or a group of related disciplines such as the arts and science. Membership may ...

for plant sciences in the world. In 2007 it celebrated its 100th anniversary during its Botanikertagung in

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

, Germany, and published a commemorative publication about its history.

Organs

Organs of the DBG are the general assembly, the executive committee and the extended board. Their respective tasks and obligations are laid down in the statutes of this

Learned society A learned society (; also learned academy, scholarly society, or academic association) is an organization that exists to promote an discipline (academia), academic discipline, profession, or a group of related disciplines such as the arts and s ...

Integration in and network of other organisations

DBG is member of national as well as international umbrella organisations: It is a founding member of the national ''Verband Biologie, Biowissenschaften und Biomedizin in Deutschland (VBIO)''. By being a member of the ''Deutsches Nationalkomitee Biologie'' (abbreviated DNK, German National Committee of Biology), DBG is internationally networked with the

International Union of Biological Sciences The International Union of Biological Sciences (IUBS) is a non-profit organization and non-governmental organization, founded in 1919, that promotes the biological sciences internationally. As a scientific umbrella organization it was a founding m ...

. It also is a member of the Federation of European Societies for Plant Biology (FESPB) and associate partner of the ''European Plant Science Organisation (EPSO)''.

Sections

DBG contains six Sections for experts in several plant science disciplines. They organise

academic conferences An academic conference or scientific conference (also congress, symposium, workshop, or meeting) is an event for researchers (not necessarily academics) to present and discuss their scholarly work. Together with academic or scientific journals an ...

and workshops on their own: *Section

Biodiversity Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...

and

Evolutionary Biology Evolutionary biology is the subfield of biology that studies the evolutionary processes (natural selection, common descent, speciation) that produced the diversity of life on Earth. It is also defined as the study of the history of life fo ...

Phycology Phycology () is the scientific study of algae. Also known as algology, phycology is a branch of life science. Algae are important as primary producers in aquatic ecosystems. Most algae are eukaryotic, photosynthetic organisms that live in a w ...

Section *Section Plant Physiology and

Molecular Biology Molecular biology is the branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecular basis of biological activity in and between cells, including biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactions. The study of chemical and physi ...

*Section Applied Botany *Section Natural Products *Section for Interactions (former Section

Mycology Mycology is the branch of biology concerned with the study of fungi, including their genetic and biochemical properties, their taxonomy and their use to humans, including as a source for tinder, traditional medicine, food, and entheogens, as ...

and

Lichenology Lichenology is the branch of mycology that studies the lichens, symbiotic organisms made up of an intimate symbiotic association of a microscopic alga (or a cyanobacterium) with a filamentous fungus. Study of lichens draws knowledge from several ...

) Five of the six Section's speakers are extended board members.

References

External links

* *
Website of DBG’s Section Plant Physiology and Molecular Biology

Website of DBG’s Phycology Section
Botanical societies Professional associations based in Germany Organizations established in 1882 {{Botany-org-stub